Playing his first live concerts at the age of 11 in pubs on the Isle of Wight, he played in several rock bands during his teens - one of which, Targa, played regularly on the London circuit, finally getting their own headlining concert at London’s prestigious Marquee Club.
During the 1990s he was trained as a Bard, poet and storyteller in the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, and it was during this time that he found his artistic expression within folk music, forming the ‘Mystic Folk’ band Spiral Castle for a support concert with Robin Williamson (founder member of the Incredible String Band). Spiral Castle played regularly during the late 90s at festivals including the Pagan Federation International Conference at Fairfield Halls in Croydon.
He released his debut solo album, "Herne’s Apprentice", in 2002. He followed this with "The Hills They Are Hollow" in 2003, "Spirit of Albion" in 2006, and "The Cauldron Born" in 2008. In 200, he released "Tales from the Crow Man", an album of mostly traditional folk songs alongside Eric Bogle’s classic anti-war song Green Fields of France. In 2010 he the live album "As Nature Intended" (download only). His album "Antlered Crown and Standing Stone" was released November 2012, and "Sabbat" was released in 2014.
After the release of Sabbat, Damh began a multi-year project to create the Four Branches of the Mabinogion in audio format, with song, story and film-type scoring. Y Mabinogi – The First Branch was released in 2017 with The Second Branch coming out the following year. The Third Branch was released in 2020.
Green And Grey
Damh the Bard Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A man in black came walking, into a woodland glade,
Following the sounds of pipes on this beautiful Spring day,
High on the music that they made.
But what beheld him within that place?
A look of recognition fell across his face,
"Lucifer, oh Lucifer, why do you appear to me?
For I am a man of God, a priest.
I'm no devil I'm Father to the land,
I have lived here since the Earth began,
Neither black nor white,
Priest hear what I say,
I'm green and grey.
The priest said, "Lucifer, Lucifer you lie so well,
I will pray unto my God, go back to the fires of Hell!
You fell from Heaven, and you fell from Grace.
You want dominion over this place."
The Piper smiled, and to the priest he said,
"I was Lord of Animals, the Wild Hunt I led,
Until your God came here and with his jealous hand,
It was he who wanted dominion over this land.
The priest said, "All evil comes from your hand."
The Piper said, "If evil is, it lies in the hearts of Man."
"But you lead us, oh you tempt us, to rape, to steal, to kill!"
The Piper said, "Whatever happened to free will?"
Then the Grove lay empty, the priest told no one.
The blossom lay upon the thorn, the Piper's tune was done.
And in the sunlit forest, the animals they bowed,
As the Piper lay his Goddess down.
Damh the Bard's song Green And Grey tells the story of a priest who encounters Lucifer or the Piper in the woods. As he hears the sound of pipes on a beautiful spring day, he follows the music and comes across the figure of Lucifer. The priest recognises him and questions him as to why he appears before him. Lucifer declares that he is not the devil; instead, he is the father to the land, living there since the Earth began, neither black nor white, but green and grey.
The priest argues with Lucifer and questions his intentions. However, Lucifer responds by stating that he was once the Lord of Animals and led the Wild Hunt until "your God" came and wanted dominion over this land. The priest claims that all evil comes from Lucifer's hand, and he leads people to do heinous things such as rape, steal and kill. However, the Piper challenges that notion by stating that evil lies in the hearts of Man, and it is up to them to choose their path. As the story continues, the priest leaves the woods without telling anyone, and the animals in the forest bow down to the Piper.
The song Green And Grey is a storytelling masterpiece that talks about different themes such as spirituality, nature, and free will. The lyrics are clear and easy to understand, and the melody is haunting and captivating.
Line by Line Meaning
Early one morning, around the first of May,
One beautiful morning in May, at the beginning of Spring,
A man in black came walking, into a woodland glade,
A man wearing black entered a serene piece of land surrounded by trees,
Following the sounds of pipes on this beautiful Spring day,
Trailing the sound of beautiful music played on pipes,
High on the music that they made.
Experiencing joy and elation due to the music played by the piper,
But what beheld him within that place?
What did he come across while he was there?
A look of recognition fell across his face,
He recognized what he saw,
"Lucifer, oh Lucifer, why do you appear to me?
He spoke to the being he saw - questioning why he appeared to him,
For I am a man of God, a priest.
Stating to the being that he is a man of God, a religious figure.
I'm no devil I'm Father to the land,
The being he saw identified himself as one responsible for nurturing the land,
I have lived here since the Earth began,
Stating that he has been present since the beginning of the world,
Neither black nor white,
This entity does not associate with either good or evil,
Priest hear what I say,
The being spoke to the priest and wanted him to listen to what he had to say,
I'm green and grey.
Stating that this entity is a blend of both good and evil,
The priest said, "Lucifer, Lucifer you lie so well,
The priest accused the being of being deceitful,
I will pray unto my God, go back to the fires of Hell!
The priest threatened to pray to God and demand that this entity go back to Hell,
You fell from Heaven, and you fell from Grace.
The priest accused him of being a fallen angel and falling from grace,
You want dominion over this place."
The priest believes this being wants complete control over the land,
The Piper smiled, and to the priest he said,
The piper showed a friendly gesture and spoke to the priest,
"I was Lord of Animals, the Wild Hunt I led,
He stated that he used to be in charge of animals and used to lead the wild hunt,
Until your God came here and with his jealous hand,
The being suggested that the priest's God, out of jealousy, took control over the land that he was in charge of,
It was he who wanted dominion over this land.
He blamed the priest's God for wanting control over the land and not himself,
The priest said, "All evil comes from your hand."
The priest accused this being of causing all evil,
The Piper said, "If evil is, it lies in the hearts of Man."
The being claimed that humans are the source of evil rather than him,
"But you lead us, oh you tempt us, to rape, to steal, to kill!"
The priest accused the being of leading humans to sin and do wrong things,
The Piper said, "Whatever happened to free will?"
The being questioned what happened to the concept of free will - implying that humans are responsible for their actions,
Then the Grove lay empty, the priest told no one.
The place was empty as no one was there, and the priest kept the events to himself,
The blossom lay upon the thorn, the Piper's tune was done.
The beauty and peace were replaced by thorny and painful events, and the piper's music came to an end,
And in the sunlit forest, the animals they bowed,
The animals in the forest showed reverence,
As the Piper lay his Goddess down.
The being took rest after its adventure in the forest,
Contributed by Keira O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.